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Summary of the Book of 1 Corinthians

This summary of the book of 1 Corinthians provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme,
theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the Book of 1 Corinthians.

Corinth in the Time of Paul

The city of Corinth, perched like a one-eyed Titan astride the narrow isthmus
connecting the Greek mainland with the Peloponnese, was one of the dominant
commercial centers of the Mediterranean world as early as the eighth century
b.c.

No city in Greece was more favorably situated for land and sea trade. With
a high, strong citadel at its back, it lay between the Saronic Gulf and the
Ionian Sea, with ports at Lechaion and Cenchrea. A diolkos, or stone
road for the overland transport of ships, linked the two seas. Crowning the
Acrocorinth was the temple of Aphrodite, served, according to Strabo, by more
than 1,000 pagan priestess-prostitutes.

By the time the gospel reached Corinth in the spring of a.d. 52, the city
had a proud history of leadership in the Achaian League, and a spirit of revived
Hellenism under Roman domination after 44 b.c. following the destruction of
the city by Mummius in 146 b.c.

Paul's lengthy stay in Corinth brought him directly in contact with the
major monuments of the agora, many of which still survive. The fountain-house
of the spring Peirene, the temple of Apollo, the macellum or
meat market (1Co 10:25) and the theater, the bema (Ac 18:12), and
the unimpressive synagogue all played a part in the experience of the apostle.
An inscription from the theater names the city official Erastus, probably the
friend of Paul mentioned in Ro 16:23 (see note there).

Author and Date

Paul
is acknowledged as the author both by the letter itself (1:1-2; 16:21) and
by the early church fathers. His authorship was attested by Clement of Rome
as early as a.d. 96, and today practically all NT interpreters concur. The
letter was written c. 55 toward the close of Paul's three-year
residency in Ephesus (see 16:5-9; Ac 20:31). It is clear from his reference
to staying at Ephesus until Pentecost (16:8) that he intended to remain there
somewhat less than a year when he wrote 1 Corinthians.

The City of Corinth

Corinth was a thriving city; it was at the time the chief city of Greece
both commercially and politically. See map and diagram, p. 2355.

Its commerce. Located just off the Corinthian isthmus (see map,
p. 2288), it was a crossroads for travelers and traders. It had two harbors:
(1) Cenchrea, six miles to the east on the Saronic Gulf, and (2) Lechaion,
a mile and a half to the north on the Corinthian Gulf. Goods were transported
across the isthmus on the Diolkos, a stone road by which smaller ships could
be hauled fully loaded across the isthmus, and by which cargoes of larger
ships could be transported by wagons from one side to the other. Trade flowed
through the city from Italy and Spain to the west and from Asia Minor, Phoenicia
and Egypt to the east.

Its culture. Although Corinth was not a university town like
Athens, it was characterized nevertheless by typical Greek culture. Its
people were interested in Greek philosophy and placed a high premium on
wisdom.

Its
religion. Corinth contained at least 12 temples. Whether they were
all in use during Paul's time is not known for certain. One of the most
infamous was the temple dedicated to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, whose
worshipers practiced religious prostitution. About a fourth of a mile north
of the theater stood the temple of Asclepius, the god of healing, and in
the middle of the city the sixth-century b.c. temple of Apollo was located.
In addition, the Jews had established a synagogue; the inscribed lintel
of it has been found and placed in the museum at old Corinth.

Its immorality. Like any large commercial city, Corinth was
a center for open and unbridled immorality. The worship of Aphrodite fostered
prostitution in the name of religion. At one time 1,000 sacred (priestess)
prostitutes served her temple. So widely known did the immorality of Corinth
become that the Greek verb "to Corinthianize" came to mean "to practice
sexual immorality." In a setting like this it is no wonder that the Corinthian
church was plagued with numerous problems.

Occasion and Purpose

Paul had received information from several sources concerning the conditions
existing in the church at Corinth. Some members of the household of Chloe had
informed him of the factions that had developed in the church (1:11). There
were three individuals -- Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus -- who had come to Paul
in Ephesus to make some contribution to his ministry (16:17), but whether these
were the ones from Chloe's household we do not know.

Some of those who had come had brought disturbing information concerning
moral irregularities in the church (chs. 5-6). Immorality had plagued the Corinthian
assembly almost from the beginning. From 5:9-10 it is apparent that Paul had
written previously concerning moral laxness. He had urged believers "not to
associate with sexually immoral people" (5:9). Because of misunderstanding
he now finds it necessary to clarify his instruction (5:10-11) and to urge
immediate and drastic action (5:3-5,13).

Other Corinthian visitors had brought a letter from the church that requested
counsel on several subjects (see 7:1 and note; cf. 8:1; 12:1; 16:1).

It is clear that, although the church was gifted (see 1:4-7), it was immature
and unspiritual (3:1-4). Paul's purposes for writing were: (1) to instruct
and restore the church in its areas of weakness, correcting erroneous practices
such as divisions (1:10 -- 4:21), immorality (ch. 5; 6:12-20), litigation in pagan
courts (6:1-8) and abuse of the Lord's Supper (11:17-34); (2) to correct false
teaching concerning the resurrection (ch. 15); and (3) to answer questions
addressed to Paul in the letter that had been brought to him (see previous
paragraph).

Theme

The letter revolves around the theme of problems in Christian conduct in
the church. It thus has to do with progressive sanctification, the continuing
development of a holy character. Obviously Paul was personally concerned with
the Corinthians' problems, revealing a true pastor's (shepherd's) heart.

Relevance

This letter continues to be timely for the church today, both to instruct
and to inspire. Christians are still powerfully influenced by their cultural
environment, and most of the questions and problems that confronted the church
at Corinth are still very much with us -- problems like immaturity, instability,
divisions, jealousy and envy, lawsuits, marital difficulties, sexual immorality
and misuse of spiritual gifts. Yet in spite of this concentration on problems,
Paul's letter contains some of the most familiar and beloved chapters in the
entire Bible -- e.g., ch. 13 (on love) and ch. 15 (on resurrection).

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
(New Living Translation - The Bible Online)